Growing up, art in any form has always captivated me. I loved going to quiet museums with my extended family and seeing art as far as the eye can see. Art became a safe place for me in early childhood, as it was my only outlet during family turmoil. My father is a diagnosed narcissist, alcoholic and abuser. He emotionally abused my older brother, mom, and me until he walked out on us when I was six years old. My brother is the one who introduced me to the process of creating art, particularly drawing and painting. I absolutely idolized him as a child, and still do. He always helps me when I'm stuck on a project and unsure where to go. Clay never fails to give me a boost of confidence when he thinks I need one. Since we have lived in poverty since my father left, my brother gave me second-hand supplies that he had extra of, and my mom somehow scraped enough money together occasionally to replenish my sketchbook collection with ones from Walmart and the pencils to go alongside it. I took every single art class in my school growing up and decided to take a computer art class on a whim in high school. I initially thought I wouldn't do well in it as I'm more familiar with traditional mediums. But, not long after the first day, I decided I wanted to go into graphic design and fashion design. The two subjects pair well together as there is lots of overlap in surface design techniques, and graphic design is used in advertising/marketing in the fashion industry. I have loved expressing myself creatively through clothes since I could first pick out my clothes as a child. Living in a low-income household has taught me how to use wardrobe staples in unique new ways and has given me my current aspiration. My mom used to go without meals so my brother and I could eat. She would go without new clothes so we could have ones in better condition on our backs, even though she desperately needed some herself. After college, I want to open a sustainable and affordable clothing company. I want to relieve similar burdens off others and not hurt their wallet or confidence in the process. Clothes are an essential part of our daily routine, they can make or break our day. Have you ever worn a pair of pants that were ill-fitting and couldn't wait to get out of them? Or, a stuffy shirt that didn't allow proper ventilation? There are numerous other examples of how something seemingly so mundane, isn't as insignificant as it may seem at first glance. I don't want to price my clothes in a way that will make people have to decide between their dinners for the next month and a shirt. To get to Dominican University, my dream school, I had to do two in a half years at a local community college for gen eds. I'm a junior fashion design and graphic design double major this year with at least 3 more years to go to finish all my required classes for both majors. At the time of transfer, I was offered internal academic scholarships that shouldered some of the cost. But I've had to take out a loan for this past spring semester and will continue to for each subsequent semester until graduation. Winning this scholarship will help to lower my stress and aid me in putting more energy toward my education which I will use to pay my community back tenfold after graduation.

I can recall where I was when I found out about many, if not most, mass shootings that have happened during my life. The earliest is Sandy Hook when I was nine years old. I remember hearing on the radio about a man going into a school and leaving twenty-eight people dead. I didn't understand the full scope of that statement at all. Reality hit me when gradually, each year, mass shooting numbers began to skyrocket. None of us are safe. Grocery stores. Post offices. Military bases. Movie theaters. Night clubs. Concerts. Parades. Offices. Churches. Festivals. Bars. Parties. Yoga studios. Dance studios. Universities. SCHOOLS. The places where we all go, and for the latter, where society's most vulnerable should be protected. Our society has let down innocent souls and those who lead them, time and time again. Primary schools like Sandy Hook, Uvalde, and most recently Covenant School, have joined the list alongside the names of both secondary and post-secondary institutions like Columbine, Parkland, UT Austin, UVA, and MSU, among thousands of other American tragedies. My attached piece titled "Déjà Vu" helped me to find the words for the struggle I've been in since I first learned about the existence and tremendous reach of mass shootings. Art has always been my go-to method for processing difficult emotions, which also pushed me this year to tackle the topic of mass shootings. Creating this piece also helped give me a project to pour my emotions into, including the fear and discontent that have been growing in me for years. By making the child have multiple skin colors, I want to lead viewers to the central theme that in our society's current climate, any child can be the victim of a mass shooting. A significant inspiration for the creation of "Déjà Vu" is the desensitization of our society towards mass shootings. We have collectively grown used to repeatedly witnessing these tragedies unfold. I'm a sophomore graphic and fashion design double major and am always looking for different ways to address world problems in my art. After going through many changes in the pencil sketch stage, the final version of "Déjà Vu" was created on Adobe Illustrator. I wanted to make something that visually was rather simplified to make it relatable, but on the same token eye-catching and for lack of a better word, controversial. Controversy causes conversation, be that good, bad, or ugly; a shocking visual can guide viewers into looking at something over again, and perhaps in a different light. Another reason behind the piece's creation was to honor those lost in mass shootings, especially children. Uvalde and MSU were the most recent events and were fresh in my mind while I was creating. But less than a week after my university debuted "Déjà Vu" as a part of my university’s annual art show collection on March 22, that latest dedication list changed. The Covenant School mass shooting happened less than a week later. The final reason I created "Déjà Vu" was to serve as a reminder to viewers of what we have become as a society. Of what will continue to happen, and what we will continue to lose in our country until we change our ways, and say "never again" once and for all.

I have been an avid reader for pretty much my entire life, having read probably hundreds of books in my almost twenty years of living. The book that transformed my mindset towards life is called "Five Chimneys: A Woman Survivor's True Story of Auschwitz " by Olga Lengyel which I read this past January, while stuck in bed with covid. The book is Lengyel's eyewitness account of the Holocaust (the beginning through liberation), in which she describes her daily routine (and the stories of others who begged her to listen and retell). The experiences she had in Auschwitz are unimaginable to people who don't know much about the Holocaust, and even for those that are familiar with the subject. I'm sure that what my brain can conjure in my imagination only scratches the surface of what she and millions of other people went through. I had to put the book down multiple times throughout the month it took me to finish reading it to process everything I took in. "Five Chimneys" taught me things that schools would not dare put in school curriculums: the actual degree of brutality and pure hatred that drenched the Holocaust. One of the most heinous aspects of her account was when she talked about how the soap was made at Auschwitz. After bodies go through the ovens, the oils that inevitably leak out and run through lines and are pressed into soap bars. I remember closing the book and setting it down after reading the line, "no wonder why the soap at Auschwitz has such a peculiar odor!" I couldn't sleep that night, that fact just kept ringing in my head with a deafening loudness and finality, that people have the capacity to do that not only to one person (which is horrible enough) but millions. When I learned about what the Holocaust was in seventh grade, I've been fascinated by how hate can fester in people to such a mind-blowing degree. Questions that I have been asking for years since I visited the Illinois Holocaust Museum and sat in a WWII cattle car are, "why are we okay with sitting by and letting atrocities like this happen? What happened to 'never again'?" I think that I enjoy reading historical books (non-fiction and fiction) because it helps me to look at things from a new perspective. After reading Five Chimneys, I found myself reflecting a lot on my life. It helped me put a lot of problems in perspective, ones that I thought were such big obstacles but aren't actually as big as they seemed. Five Chimneys transformed my mindset towards life, and gave me a goal to fight towards. There are multiple genocides happening throughout the world and we as a society have a habit of addressing them with a hashtag or headline, then forgetting about them the week after. I have begun working on a fantasy webtoon comic that addresses genocide and a main girl character's job to stop it. The theme I will follow is that cause and effect rules everything, and by ignoring causes there will be greater effects. Hatred is something that will always have terrible consequences if left to brew unaddressed. I'm currently world building and will be beginning to write episodes soon. I want to donate a portion of the revenue I hope to make to different human rights organizations that provide aid to refugees and survivors of genocide and mass atrocities. "Five Chimneys" will always serve as a motivator, guide, and most importantly a lesson for me. In the face of bigotry, I will never be silent.

My favorite way to help others is to provide for others. For about five years, I ran a personal donation drive with a couple friends for a local shelter called Tender Loving Care Animal Shelter in my area. Once I reached twelve years old, I volunteered in the cattery area at another local no-kill shelter called NAWS Humane Society and did that during the summer for a couple years. I love being able to see how my effort positively affects others, and I really enjoy seeing their reactions to my work. When it comes to two-legged beings, I tend to make care baskets and handmade gifts often for friends and family. If I know someone is depressed, I'll make a small care package and mail it to them with things that might help boost their serotonin. I like surprising friends and getting them gifts just because I'm grateful for them. Due to the pandemic, I haven't been able to go out much these last two years as my mom is high risk and I also have an underlying inflammatory condition. I learned about Gabriel's Light by chance through the radio and applied to the youth ambassador program that same afternoon. The mission that drives Gabriel's Light is wanting to make a positive impact on youth suicide and bullying rates through kindness campaigns and education. I was a youth ambassador for three separate sessions with the group, and enjoyed every second of it. We ambassadors were responsible for posting about National Suicide Prevention Week, National Bullying Prevention Month, resources for those who may be struggling, self care techniques, and promotional posts about our first media campaign, #shinethelight. I take pride in the work I do for others, which I will continue to do for as long as I can.

Growing up, I absolutely idolized my older brother and I still do. He's my only sibling and he's the reason I became interested in art in the first place. I saw him create so many vibrant, eye-catching drawings that I just had to learn more about everything art related. Since we're seven years apart, I saw him begin to hone his skills when I was still at a young age. Because of this, I felt inspired to begin creating different pieces at that young age, as I wanted to replicate what he did. Throughout my childhood, I loved having my head in the clouds whenever I could find a spare moment and quickly became interested in a variety of creative activities. Once I started growing older, my love for art only grew. As my confidence grew, I began to utilize and gain expertise in a multitude of mediums. I'm proficient in painting (acrylic, gouache, watercolor), drawing (graphite, colored pencils, crayons), digital art, and fiber arts (crocheting, I recently taught myself how to knit). I also have some experience with creating pottery. Beginning this year I plan to start learning how to sew and make clothes. Among traditional mediums, graphite will always have a special place in my heart as it's the medium I've worked with since early childhood. One of my new favorite mediums is digital art. Once I began to work with Adobe programs, I realized how much I enjoyed making digital art which is why I chose to go to pursue a major and career in graphic design. Watching my brother grow as an artist over the years has continued to inspire me to pursue new mediums and continue to sharpen my skills. He always encourages me to dig deep and I like going to him for advice when I'm stuck. My favorite experience so far that I've had in the arts is whenever I connect with others over creating. Throughout my school career, my art opened up doors for conversations with people I never expected. Peers of mine have commented and questioned me about "what I'm working on today", while my teachers commented on how their favorite parts of my works. I have found through art that I am able to connect and relate to a variety of people. I love that art can be one of a kind, yet many people may relate or like the same piece (often for different reasons as well). I love seeing how art can bring people together and I think there needs to be a bigger focus on it in our society.